PAT CAPUTO: Why the Lions must re-think how they approach the NFL Draft WITH VIDEO

Detroit Lions wide receiver Titus Young (16) celebrates his touchdown with fans in the first half of an NFL football game against the Seattle Seahawks, Sunday, Oct. 28, 2012. in Detroit. (AP Photo/Rick Osentoski)

The draft is more important in the NFL than the other three major team sports.

The NFL is the only league there isn't an out for a player a team absolutely wants to retain. That's because of the NFL's "franchise" player designation. It severely limits the quality of premier free agents available.

There are 11 spots on each side of the ball in the football, special teams to consider and an attrition rate due to injuries which is often alarming.

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Depth is paramount in all sports, but none close to the degree it is necessary in the NFL.

A baseball or hockey player at, say, 32, is still considered in his prime. In the NBA, a little more of a wary eye is cast toward a player of that age. In the NFL, especially for players not on the interior line, it is like their careers are about to end.

There are exceptions. Truly great players like Jerry Rice and Ray Lewis were at the top of their games deep into their 30s. Quarterbacks are different because of the nature of the position.

But the dynamics of the NFL are clear: It is not the league players should be drafted with the idea they may some day develop into quality players. Instead, it is the league players should be selected based on how effectively they can contribute immediately.

It's a lesson the Lions, hopefully for the sake of their fans, should have learned by now.

The last two drafts, in particular, have been painful lessons for the Lions.

Defensive tackle, for example, was the position of great strength for the Lions heading into the 2011 draft because it was already manned by Ndamukong Suh, Corey Williams and Sammie Hill. The Lions nonetheless drafted defensive tackle Nick Fairley 13th overall under the guise he was clearly the best player on the board and fell to that spot. The Lions needed help in the secondary, and it was their downfall late that season. They did get good production from second round pick Titus Young, who has since fallen off track to the point where his release appears to be imminent because of behavioral issues, but his production as a rookie was a key to the Lions doing well in '11. The Lions did have depth at receiver last year. They were set at offensive tackle going into the draft. They were badly lacking depth in the secondary. Not addressing that issue in the first two rounds, instead taking tackle Riley Reiff and wide receiver Ryan Broyles, proved to be costly, especially when their were so many defensive backs the Lions passed on in the 2012 performing admirably as rookies (Harrison Smith, Janoris Jenkins, Josh Robinson, Casey Hayward).

The idea you must wait years to fully judge a draft has some merit, but mostly it is an excuse for missing with picks.

It's not taking a player after he has gone to college for just one year - like in the NBA, and then awaiting development three or four years down the road. There is no minor league system to procure players, such as baseball and the NHL.

You know sooner instead of later what you have drafted in the NFL, and the last two drafts have not gone well for the Lions. You look at the those two drafts, how much impact did the players taken in those drafts have on this past season? Young is proving to be a disaster. Running back Mikel Leshoure was just OK - free agent running back Joique Bell from Wayne State was actually better. Fairley had his moments, but not that many given how his choice was celebrated on draft day. Reiff looks like he will be a solid NFL player - "some day." But the NFL is a league where "some day" is often too late.

"Some day" is after coaches and general managers get fired, and regimes are shaken up.

There is a window of opportunity for the Lions to strike because they have outstanding talent at their core in quarterback Matthew Stafford, wide receiver Calvin Johnson and Suh. These aren't young players anymore - they are in their prime.

The Lions must draft as if they understand that window will not remain open forever, and that there are no tomorrows in a league that is all about one thing, and one thing only.